What does the Morrisons deal mean for Jersey?

So, the deal is done, and we will soon start to see Morrisons make its presence felt in the Island.

The UK supermarket giant must be confident that it will make an impact on the Jersey market it is entering, which, on paper at least, must seem a small community already saturated with competition. But with some decent-sized stores included in the deal (Bath Street, Les Quennevais, St Peter) and plenty of convenience stores, Morrisons could be in a position to make a significant dent in the competition.

A quick scan on Morrisons UK website would suggest around 80% of the prices we looked at were cheaper than can be found locally in Jersey, more often than not going head-to-head with Waitrose’s Essentials range. However, I think many consumers are already resigned to the fact that we will see some kind of mark-up in prices. If not immediately, then eventually. Our volunteer price collectors at the Council will be keeping a close eye on this for you. And the extension of Morrisons’ loyalty points and members pricing scheme will provide competition to the Co-op’s membership scheme, so it will be interesting to see how the two supermarket chains respond.

But we must remember that the loss of Iceland is bad news for some – particularly the less well-off in our Island community. Parking the nutritional value aside, the ability to bulk-buy affordable, frozen, easy-to-cook food and meals has long been a huge draw for struggling families, and the closures of these stores will have a real impact. That said, Alliance have said they will be stocking Iceland products. How many lines and at what price is not clear yet, but with most of their stores being in the town centre without dedicated parking and not easily accessed by cars, it’s not going to be the same.

As a measure of how people continue to struggle, I was in touch with Patrick Lynch this week, who runs Caritas - one of the three main foodbanks in Jersey. They are currently supplying food and other assistance to more than 500 households in Jersey made up of 1,600 people. And that is just one agency. The word shocking doesn’t even come close.

As all of us are consumers, we must continue to shop around, vote with our feet and by doing so, supermarket retailers will have to work hard to attract us to shop in their stores.